


Emily Overwhelmed

by mcgarrygirl78



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Drama, F/M, Family, Romance, post-episode
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-11
Updated: 2014-10-11
Packaged: 2018-02-20 17:33:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2437043
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She was compassionate and strong but there was only so much she could see before Emily wanted to cover her eyes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Emily Overwhelmed

**Author's Note:**

> Spoilers for Solitary Man.

“Haley used to tell me if I didn’t stop watching him he would wake up and I would have to put him back to sleep.”

Hotch came up behind Emily, his hands on her shoulders. She was in Jack’s doorway, afraid to go inside and wake him, watching him sleep. They had been back from New Mexico for about an hour and the only place she wanted to go was to see Jack. Emily couldn’t explain why but she needed to. Hotch made the call to Jessie; the door was open when they arrived.

“What did you say about that?” She asked.

“I promised I’d put him back to sleep.”

Hotch slid his hands down her arms and then his arms around her waist. He felt Emily’s body relax as they both watched the sleeping boy.

“He has school in the morning, Emily, we should go.”

“I don’t know why but I don’t want to leave him. I know I have to…but I don’t want to.”

“Jessie is going to take good care of him.” Hotch assured her. He knew that she knew that. It was strange but he remembered doing the same with Haley the first few times they left their son there. It was strange how things came full circle. “We probably need to get as much sleep as they do.”

Emily nodded, finally turning away and going downstairs with Hotch. Jessie was in the kitchen; she offered them tea.

“No, thank you.” Hotch said. “We’re going to get out of your hair so you can get some sleep. Thanks so much for letting us come.”

“Don’t be silly, Aaron, the door is always open. Emily, are you alright?”

“I'm fine, thanks. I just had an overwhelming urge to see him.”

“There were kids on the case, weren't there?” Jessie asked.

“Am I that obvious?” Emily asked, a tired smile crossing her face.

“After Aaron and Haley split, he came over a lot after tough ones with kids. Seeing Jack safe and sound in bed helped some.”

“How is Haley?” Emily asked.

Hotch couldn’t say he was shocked to hear the question but that didn’t mean he expected it. Right or wrong, he didn’t talk to Emily a lot about it. He told her he was going to see his ex-wife once a week and she seemed fine with that. He always took her dinner, went with Jack, and was supervised by Steve…it was all very 21st century blended family.

Haley always seemed happy to see him. She never blamed him for what happened; at least not to his face. That was alright, Hotch blamed himself. Hearing Emily ask the question, he started to think he should talk to her about it. Secrets, even ones that he didn’t think were secrets at all, had no place in their relationship.

“She’s good.” Jessie smiled thinking of her sister. “Everyday is a new battle and a new victory. She’s coming home soon and we think she’s going to stay here with me. It’s easier for Jack to be close to her. We also don’t think it’s a good idea to go back to the house.”

“Please give her my love the next time you see her.” Emily replied.

“That would be tomorrow. You should come and see her, Emily. I know it might be awkward but we’re all a family now. She knows that the BAU saved her life and though she doesn’t remember everything…having visitors makes her happy.”

“I’ll think about it. I don’t want to make anyone uncomfortable.” She reached for Jessie’s hands and squeezed. “Thanks for letting us come.”

“Anytime, I mean that. Drive safely.”

“I'm going to pick up Jack tomorrow after I leave Quantico.” Hotch said. “A quiet weekend at home is in order.”

“Sure thing. I’ll give him some dinner and he’ll be really excited when he hears you're coming.”

Hotch kissed her cheek and Emily waved as they went out the back door and around the side of the house to the driveway. Hotch unlocked the SUV, opening Emily’s door. She climbed in and as he got into the driver’s seat, she leaned her seat back some.

“I'm so glad Haley is doing better.” She said.

“I guess I should've told you that.”

“It makes you uncomfortable Hotch, I get that.”

“It’s not that. Well, OK, maybe it is.”

“We don’t have to talk about it. In fact, it might be a little too much tonight. I just need the quiet.”

He nodded, starting the car. Hotch turned off the radio and headed back to DC. The streets of Fairfax were quiet, which wasn’t unusual. Emily hated the suburbs for just that reason. She liked noise, people, lights…she was a city girl. Taking a deep breath, she looked at Hotch. He was concentrating on the road.

“I'm about to break a rule.” She said.

“Which one?” Hotch asked.

“Number nine.”

“Never compare each other or yourself to an Unsub no matter how sympathetic they may seem. I came up with that one.”

“I know.”

“Go on and break it, I think I'm ready.”

“I just can't help thinking about what you would do if faced with losing Jack. Don’t get me wrong, I will never justify what Hatchett was doing, and the damage done to Jody might be irreparable, but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t thinking about it. How far will a man go when the love of his child is his reasoning?”

“That was not his reasoning; Hatchett was doing what he wanted to do. He could’ve gotten another job Emily. The courts thought his lifestyle was too unstable…he could have done something else. He made a choice, the wrong choice. Being a parent is about sacrifice but he didn't feel the need to do that. He was going to do what he wanted and have his family too. It doesn’t work that way.”

“You didn’t leave the BAU.” Emily reasoned.

“Haley was there to take care of Jack. She will be again when she recovers. Jessie is there, and we’re there as well. Its not the same situation and you shouldn’t compare it.” He glanced at her. “I mean that.”

“I'm sorry.”

“It’s alright. What's really on your mind?”

“I don’t know.” Emily shrugged. “I have so many thoughts running through my mind, I can't get them straight. I think what I really need is a good night’s sleep. I don’t think it will make more sense in the morning but we’ll see.”

He nodded, occasionally looking at her as the quiet streets of the suburbs changed into the bustling streets of the nation’s capital. Hotch hated this traffic but knew in a few minutes that he would be in the warmth of bed sheets and Emily’s arms. He needed to sleep off this case as well. Cases with children often made him think of his own child. Even though he told Emily he didn’t want to be compared to Hatchett, it had crossed his mind.

There was nowhere a parent wouldn’t go or nothing they wouldn’t do for their child. Would they kill for them? Surely without a second thought if it came to it. Kidnapping innocent women to help you fulfill a fantasy that would never be…that was not coming to it. That was selfish and criminal. To say he was doing that for his child, Wade Hatchett didn’t know what being a father was.

“Where are we going?” Emily asked.

“Home. Did you have someplace else in mind?”

“No. Are we going to my home or yours?”

“Yours; I'm in the mood for a comfortable mattress and fluffy towels in the morning.” Hotch replied.

“So that’s what keeps you coming over, huh?”

“The company is excellent; George and I have a lot of fun together.”

Emily laughed, punching his arm. She knew that’s what Hotch was trying to do and she let him have his moment. They both needed to loosen up; the case was over. There would be another one very soon and then another after that…the job never ended. If it didn’t eat at you, there was something very wrong. If you let it eat at you too much, the same was true.

You had to get up and dust yourself off. Being in the BAU had destroyed better agents than Emily Prentiss. Everyone thought she was fine, thought her compartmentalization skills were the stuff of legend. She was only human. She was compassionate and strong but there was only so much she could see before Emily wanted to cover her eyes. Tonight she wanted to cover her eyes.

“I love you, Aaron Hotchner.”

“I love you too, and I know it’s not always easy.”

“To love me?” Emily asked.

“To let go, Em. Loving you is easy as pie.” He turned into the underground parking garage of the Watergate East building. Hotch parked the car, got out, and went around to open Emily’s door. She jumped out and into his arms, hugging him tight against her. Hotch inhaled the scent of her skin. Was it possible that her scent changed since she got pregnant? He really could smell her all day, which was probably weird but he didn’t care.

“C'mon, Agent Prentiss, we need to get you in bed.”

“And do what?” She held his hand as they walked to the elevator.

“Mmm, show off my creative side.”

“I definitely like the sound of that.”

They got upstairs and into her condo. Straight upstairs to bed, Hotch shooed George out of the room. The Abyssinian was not happy but he went after Emily gave him some love. She let Hotch undress her and when it was her turn to do the same, he didn’t reach for the lights. Emily didn’t feel the need to mark the milestone with words but she looked at him, really looked at him, and made sure he saw the desire in her eyes. Hotch took her face in his hands; he couldn’t find the words either.

Under the covers, they held on to each other and Emily listened to Hotch’s heartbeat in her ear. It was a comfort, always. He rubbed her back as his mind started to slow down in the hopes that sleep would come easy tonight. That was never a guarantee though it was more likely with her in his arms.

“We need to live together.” He spoke softly.

“Why Aaron Hotchner, you romantic.”

“I mean it. I need to wake up next to you every morning. I need to be close.”

“You are close.”

“Is that a no?”

“It’s not.”

“You're going to have my child. I want to be here for everything. I want to be with you, baby, that’s when I'm happy.”

“Here?” Emily asked.

“It’s bigger than my place but I think we should get a house before the baby comes.”

“That doesn’t give us a lot of time. There’s always time later to buy a house.”

“Well there is one I had my eye on; in Woodley Park…I think you're going to love it.”

“You're going to buy me a house, Hotch?” Emily looked up at him wearing a sleepy smile.

“I'm going to give you everything you want.” He replied. “Is that alright?”

“It’s a tall order…I wouldn’t want to overwhelm you.”

“You already have, in a good way.” He kissed her. “You have in a very good way.”

Emily kissed him again, moving on the mattress and pulling him over her.

“Don’t you always talk about reciprocity, Hotch?”

“I do.” His lips moved across the underside of her chin and down her neck.

“Good. Overwhelm me; make me feel like you feel.”

That would not be a problem. He always wanted to show Emily how much he loved her; it made him happy. It made her happy and that was even better. Cases were hard, people were cruel; Hotch wanted to create a world for them where happiness and love were the roots they built upon. Sometimes he wasn’t sure it was possible…he’d already failed once. But in her arms, in her bed, in her life, he found it again. He had Emily, he had Jack, and they had a baby on the way. That wasn’t overwhelming; dare he say it was just right.

***

  



End file.
